Chapter 174 The Powerful Minister Returns to His Youth 28.
Seeing that things were looking promising, Long Ran pressed on: "No matter how powerful the evil spirits are, they can't possibly know everything about our past... Xuan Shu, you can't hastily conclude that Fourth Brother isn't your Fourth Brother just because he has a headache, is mentally unsettled, and does some strange things! Who hasn't lost control or made a mistake in a moment? Besides... what happened just now was all intentional on Fourth Brother's part; it was all premeditated!"
"Besides, what evil spirits are there in this world? Would evil spirits speak to you so politely? Your fourth brother is a prince of the dragon, so how could any evil spirits dare to approach him?"
"Xuan Shu... calm down. Fourth Brother is truly not an evil spirit. If you don't believe me, you can immediately go and invite a master or Taoist priest. Fourth Brother will let you do whatever you want with him!"
Long Ran believed that his argument was reasonable and well-founded.
Ye Cangxing stared intently at his face. Long Ran's gaze was open and fearless. He was not an evil spirit, so what was there to be afraid of?
After a brief standoff, Ye Zangxing and Yu Shiqing exchanged a glance, then Ye slowly lowered his knife, and Yu Shiqing also withdrew his hand.
"Fourth Brother, I'm sorry," Ye Zangxing bowed, his eyes filled with remorse, "Xuan Shu acted impulsively. What I saw just now was really strange, coupled with Master Shouxin's previous talk of 'evil energy'..."
“I didn’t mean to hurt you, Fourth Brother. I just wanted to find out about the origins of this evil spirit. I’m sorry to have frightened you. I was just following your orders. I didn’t mean it. Please punish me, Fourth Brother.”
One of you almost stabbed me in the neck, and the other nearly crushed my throat. You think an apology is all that's going to do? And you even want to "punish" me? If I really punished you, how could I still be your true "Fourth Brother"?
Long Ran raised his hand to cover his neck and coughed. He really felt that these two people were so young, yet they were already so hypocritical. They were just fooling honest gentlemen like Prince Yong!
“It’s alright,” Long Ran said, his throat burning, suppressing his anger as he forced out a gentle and calm voice, “You were just letting your concern cloud your judgment. I’ll punish you by making you go back and copy the ‘Great Learning’ and ‘Doctrine of the Mean’ again…”
This was Yong Wang's usual way of "punishing" his sixth brother. Although Long Ran really wanted to slap these two, he didn't dare to do anything more at this critical juncture, which was out of character for Yong Wang.
Ye Zangxing had no objection to the punishment, while Yu Shiqing, with a forced smile, brought over tea.
"Please have some, Your Highness," said the scholar in blue. "I apologize for my disrespect."
Long Ran wanted to roll her eyes at him, but she held back, accepted the tea, and nodded: "If there's nothing else, you can leave now..."
Before he could finish speaking, Ye Zangxing interrupted him, "By the way, Fourth Brother," he said with undisguised curiosity, "were you saying those strange things to Rong Xiuqing downstairs just now to try and find out who the real mastermind behind the Demon Queen's rebellion was?"
Who is the real mastermind behind the Empress Dowager's rebellion?
Long Ran paused, "Do we even need to figure this out?"
History books have it all written down: this group claimed to possess some kind of treasure from the previous dynasty, but no one ever saw it; it was all nonsense. They were capable, but not exceptionally so. Their biggest feat was causing a huge uproar in the capital when the Crown Prince was on a northern expedition and Emperor Tianxi was critically ill. After that, they went into hiding for less than five years before being eliminated by Yu Shiqing's scheme. They never made a splash again after that.
It is said that their leader was a cousin of Liang Hou who had unexpectedly escaped the calamity of the barbarian tribes, and was later killed by Yu Shiqing.
Is it really necessary to be so alarmed about a bunch of incompetent rebels who didn't even leave more than three lines in the History of Qi? They're still too green.
Long Ran glanced at the two teenagers with a sense of superiority, as if he had everything under control, and calmly replied, "That's right. I've already found some clues, and I'll be able to wipe them out in one fell swoop soon..."
Ye Zangxing's face lit up with surprise, but he interrupted him again: "What clue? Is the person behind it all Duan Fan, the one Fourth Brother mentioned?"
What does this have to do with Duan Fan?! Wait, it might actually be related to Duan Fan, otherwise how would these rebels know his and Duan Fan's exclusive time-travel code...?
Moreover, just as Yu Weiren said, if there wasn't something wrong, why would the Demon Queen's rebels attack Afu for no reason? They have some understanding of transmigrators or reincarnated individuals, which is why they were able to discover Afu's abnormality after only a few encounters!
Long Ran's face stiffened, and he felt a chill run down his spine.
If the empress and her rebellious faction get involved with time travelers, will they still be as easy to deal with as in history books? Could something truly unforeseen happen? What about Duan Fan? And what about himself, who has been targeted by the rebellious faction?
"No," Long Ran said, concealing his inner turmoil. "Duan Fan is a good person. He might have some connection with the Empress's rebels, but he's definitely not what you think. Since the plan hasn't been completed yet, and this person is involved, I can't say much to you to avoid ruining the plan. But if you see him in the future, be vigilant. If he encounters trouble, you must help him, and it would be best to bring him to see me."
"And there's the Empress's rebellion. I suddenly remembered Afu and Awang. Those people are so despicable. They wouldn't even spare two such adorable children. We can't wait any longer. Xuan Shu, and... Mr. Yu, you must arrest them immediately and eradicate them completely!"
Long Ran suddenly seemed to think of the child and became extremely angry.
Ye Zangxing said, "Fourth Brother, although we have learned a lot about the power and movements of the Empress Dowager's rebels, we are hesitant to take action due to two concerns."
Long Ran hurriedly asked, "What are you worried about?"
He had been asleep for a while, and only woke up these past two days because Prince Yong was injured and weak. He knew nothing about the Empress Dowager's rebellion before, only that Ye Zangxing and Prince Yong had talked about something, and then Prince Yong let Ye Zangxing do it.
“First, the Liang faction has been operating in Jiangnan for many years, colluding with numerous officials and merchants, and has a vast network of connections. If we act rashly, it may cause serious damage and also affect Fourth Brother’s current mission. Second, the identity of the person in charge of the Liang faction has not yet been ascertained. If we fail to kill the snake, we will suffer the consequences instead,” Ye Zangxing said.
What's the Prince Yong's mission this time? Oh right, he's here to investigate tax revenue, and speaking of tax revenue and the Liang faction...
Long Ran paused, then said, "Re-interrogate the prefect arrested for investigating tax revenue. He's definitely colluding with the Liang faction, and might even have met the person in charge! And those guys from the Garrison Command... they all need to be re-interrogated!"
Long Ran pondered the official histories, unofficial histories, and historical stories he had read. "Although the Liang faction has some influence, it is not unbreakable. If one faction is exposed, another will be exposed. Don't worry about any serious damage. As for Yong... I have brought a secret decree with me on this trip, which gives me the authority to act first and report later. We must not allow them to act recklessly!"
Whether it's his brother's safety or the Yong King's throne, he has to protect them both! Long Ran was filled with worry.
While he was racking his brains, trying to find a way to help, Ye Zangxing and Yu Shiqing exchanged a glance in the corner, their eyes both dark and brooding.
In the middle of the night, the two left the heavily guarded room.
Long Ran slumped onto the bed. After a wave of pain, shock, and worry, he couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep.
"Sixth Prince."
In the corridor, the guards bowed their heads.
Ye Zangxing waved his hand slightly and, together with Yu Shiqing, went into a guest room next door that had also been cleaned.
The door closed, and everyone else was dismissed. Yu Shiqing and Ye Cangxing sat at the table, separated by a candlestick, looking at each other.
“It’s not Fourth Brother,” Ye Zangxing said first.
“It is not some kind of evil spirit.” Yu Shiqing said in a low voice.
"Could that be the extraordinary person you mentioned before?" Ye Zangxing leaned closer, his brow furrowed slightly. "This... this thing that seems to be called Long Ran, at first glance, appears to be human, and relatively simple-minded, experiencing surprise, joy, and fear. It doesn't seem to have much guile, and vaguely seems to know something about the future, or rather, some secret things that we don't know..."
As Ye Zangxing spoke, his voice trembled slightly.
When Yu Shiqing found him yesterday and dragged him out of Huai'an Prefecture to tell him about Doctor Rong, Afu, Awang, Prince Yong, and other such people, he was still confused and couldn't believe it, as if he were listening to a story.
But tonight, one thing after another, what I don't understand, I treat as ordinary; what I do understand, however, is breathtaking.
How could such a thing possibly happen in the world!
When his fourth brother suffered a headache, he might no longer be his fourth brother, but a different "person"; Afu seemed to be able to foresee the future, and his fourth brother's family seemed to know something about it; Dr. Rong also seemed to have someone behind her who could foresee the future, and because this unique ability shouldn't be something everyone had, they worried that Afu would get in their way, so they wanted to poison her...
And how does his Danzhi know so much? Could it be... that he also has those chaotic dreams, even clearer and more realistic than I do?
Yes, and myself too, am I also considered one of the "outsiders" that Danzhi mentioned?
“Yes and no,” Yu Shiqing said, “Long Ran, or rather, people similar to him, seem to have something fundamentally different about this place…”
"Completely different things?" Ye Zangxing raised his eyes.
Yu Shiqing shook his head; he couldn't explain it either.
He lived for forty-four years in his previous life and had never seen such things. Surely, it's not like everyone becomes extraordinary just because he's reborn.
In fact, before today's test, he had always thought that Long Ran was a reborn wandering soul that had entered the body of Prince Yong for some unknown reason. He was also a reborn person, but his rebirth method was different from his and the little princess's.
If that's the case, as far as he knows, there are at least four reborn individuals here. Among the Empress's rebellious faction, the one who directly or indirectly caused Doctor Rong to poison the young princess also counts as one.
But now, he no longer thinks that way.
Long Ran, and Duan Fan, whom Long Ran mentioned—someone among the rebels—may not be as simple as being reborn or possessing precognition. They know things that even reborn individuals don't, and they exude an air of arrogant arrogance, as if they've already seen through everything, along with a detached sense of alienation. For a couple of moments, Long Ran reminded him of a scholar in a teahouse who often enthusiastically discusses the affairs of the past, viewing history through the lens of the present.
"So, how exactly did he get into my brother's body?" Ye Zangxing asked. "We must get him out and calm him down. Right now, he doesn't seem to have any ill intentions, but what if he does in the future? My brother could easily be controlled by him! Not to mention that headache... it's definitely related to him. We can ignore everything else for now; this is the most urgent matter!"
Yu Shiqing agreed with Ye Zangxing's statement, but there was really no way to start with this matter.
"We still have to wait for His Highness Prince Yong to wake up."
Yu Shiqing sighed, "Based on our previous guesses, Long Ran's appearances should be limited; he won't be around all the time. He just fell asleep, and when he wakes up again, it should be the Prince. It would be best to discuss this matter with the Prince; perhaps we'll find some new clues."
"However, when talking to the prince, one should also be careful, as Long Ran is like a dual soul to him, and may also be able to hear and see what the prince feels."
“I know you’re worried about the Prince, but don’t be too anxious, or you’ll just lose your composure and suffer more losses than gains,” Yu Shiqing raised his hand and gently cupped Ye Cangxing’s trembling fingers. “According to your description when you came, the Prince has been living with him for many years and only has a headache for now, so it should be able to wait a little longer.”
"Once it gets light, we'll set off immediately and head back to Huai'an."
Ye Zangxing looked at Yu Shiqing: "Danzhi, you... seem to have some leads?"
“It’s hard to say,” Yu Shiqing said. “Let’s ask the young princess first. She can’t say anything about the headache; she knows more about it than His Highness Prince Yong himself.”
Ye Cangxing paused, his dark blue eyes blinking slightly in the candlelight. "And... what about you?"
He suddenly asked, "Do you understand the so-called future better than Afu...?"
Yu Shiqing's hand holding Ye Zangxing tightened slightly. After a moment, he looked up and met those dreamlike, enchanting eyes.
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